New Year Resolutions

In 2018 I will . . .

I hate New Year's Resolutions. They always feel like a millstone round my neck. It's almost as if the fear of not succeeding, stops me from even starting. No matter whether its a personal NYR or a business related one, I rarely achieve the results I am hoping for - probably because I set the bar too high, or look at the end goal rather than the steps needed to get there.

The only NYR that I have ever succeeded with is stopping smoking. I kicked that habit way back. What was different about that one? How did I make that NYR work, when so many before and since have failed? .

Winding down . . .

Professionally, 2017 has been a wonderful year. I recorded more audiobooks this year than ever before, and made my first ever trip to New York for the Audio Publisher's Association Conference, where, as well as making many new connections with authors, publishers, coaches, narrators and producers; I also met many 'virtual' friends and colleagues face to face for the first time.

I feel so grateful to be able to do all of this - and look forward to narrating more wonderful books; and to sharing my voice-related musings and experience with you all during 2018.

Equality? Not in Audiobooks apparently.

According to a survey by Audible.com (published by Bustle) the top ten most listened to Audiobooks of 2017 were all narrated by men. Four of them are Harry Potter titles read by Jim Dale - but of the remaining six, a mixture of fiction and non-fiction titles - were all read my male readers ... every single one. Of course there will be other lists giving a different perspective, but as this one is from Audible ... it is coming direct from the horse's mouth so to speak.

Perhaps the fact that the no 1 slot was taken by the Audiobook 'The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck' should raise my spirits (it perfectly sums up 2017 after all) but somehow it doesn't. It seems that that female narrators are just not getting an equal crack at the best sellers!

You can find the original article from Audible.com published by Bustle HERE

An actor's technique - tip of the day

"Rehearsals are the discovery period. When you get to the performance itself, whether it be a one-off, a recording for television, radio or film, a play with a limited run, or for a long season, your technique allows you to reach back to the rehearsal period in order to remember and to truthfully recreate your original discoveries".

'Girls From The Local' by Rosie Archer

A heartwarming wartime storyNarrated by Helen Lloyd

Even in the middle of war the local pub provides a warm welcome, thanks to its trio of barmaids.Ruby has been living and working at the 'Point of No Return' pub since her parents were killed by a bomb. She loves the bustle of the pub; it helps take her mind off worrying about her fiance, Joe, away fighting in France. The only thing Ruby doesn't like about the Point is Sylvie. This singing siren may have a beautiful voice, but she's out for all she can get, including Joe. Finally there's Marge, a true party girl and the mother of two young children. The three of them face many obstacles to fulfilling their dreams, will the bonds of friendship and camaraderie that hold the Point together keep them going through the darkest of times?

My Acting Credentials

I won a scholarship to the prestigious London Drama School, The Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 1969 after two years of intensive training in all aspects of acting. The first part of my career as an actor, was mainly on stage, treading the boards of many of the UK's foremost Repertory Theatres playing major roles across all genres, Strindberg to Shakespeare, Aykbourn to Agatha Christie. Highlights include playing at the Old Vic in Jonathan Miller's 'King Lear' with Sir Michael Hordern, and playing Miss Julie at the Roundhouse Studio. In the West End I played Mollie Ralston, the Heroine in year 29 of 'The Mousetrap', which holds the record for the longest running play in the world, ever! Acting has always been my first love - I feel strongly that good training is vital for actors - even though I am not sure that acting can ever be taught - it can certainly never be pushed or forced - it is absolutely about being open and accepting and though an actor can be guided in his craft, but the inherent talent must be there to begin with.

A is for ... Acting

Actor's Technique Tip of the Day

"The actor’s job is to create a truth allowing the audience to become emotionally involved, experiencing the feeling that the scene dictates; thus the audience weeps - not the actor! ​​ The actor who insists on 'feeling it' is not acting, but rather being self-indulgent".

A Bit of Background

Almost fifty years after graduating from drama school, (GSM&D) I am amazed by how useful and relevant my formal acting training still is - and even more amazed that I remember so much of it in such detail! As I now work mainly as a voice actor, the rigorous vocal training I received is something for which I am constantly grateful. So I thought it might be interesting to examine some of the things I learned during my training and as a young actor working with some of the best actors and directors in the business. I've moved from the stage to the recording booth now, but what I learned when training for the stage is equally relevant to the voice actor. So here goes .... start with 'A'!​

A is for ... Accents

WHAT IS AN ACCENT?​The term 'accent' describes the combination of pitch, stresses and rhythm of someone's everyday speech, as well as how they pronounce their vowels and consonants. Everyone has an accent. You speak with an accent even if you speak like all the people around you and even if you speak modern (or traditional) received pronunciation; defined as: “the regionally neutral, prestige accent of British English",

An accent is not, strictly speaking, the same thing as a dialect though they are often confused and it is difficult to imagine a dialect that is not associated with an accent. Strictly speaking the definition of a dialect is:‘A dialect (or patois) is a particular form of language which is peculiar to a specific region or social group.’"

Everyone has an accent to a lesser or greater degree – no matter in what language they are speaking; French with a Parisian accent is very different from French as spoken in the Marseilles, Catalonian Spanish is different from Andalucian Spanish; The American of the Deep South is very different from the accent of the New York suburbs … and so it is the whole world over.

Even the classic neutral voice as heard in news bulletins and documentary narrations, in theatres and on radio in every country in the world, is in itself a kind of ‘accent’.

We are all judged to some degree by our accent. Some judgements are positive, others less so. Certain accents are seen as more 'authentic' than others - but surely, your voice is your voice. Or are are we all naturally bilingual?

Listen to a child playing with their friends - they will almost certainly speak differently in the playground than they will when speaking with their parents or grandparents. I did when I was a youngster - my Northern flat 'A' 'bath' and 'path' with my friends, 'bahth' and 'pahth' at home. Both are my 'authentic' voice - I am not putting on either - it just depends who I am speaking to - and because of the kind of work I do - the neutral RP voice is the one I use most, though not exclusively..

'A' is for Accuracy

There are two kinds of accuracy that challenge the voice actor. Firstly there is the accuracy (or inaccuracy) of the text you're reading, which may contain grammatical errors, errors that change the intended meaning, naming errors where a character starts out as Freddy and changes to Eddie half way through the MS, factual errors, or claims that you believe to be untrue.

Then there are the bloopers - those moments when your eyes, your brain and your mouth become totally disconnected so that you say doesn't actually bear any relation to what you see on the page! Some small errors such as contractions are usually acceptable, the reader says 'it's' when the text says 'it is' for example.

Surely as long as you don't change the sense and meaning, a few slip ups don't really matter do they? Or do they? Here are my thoughts . . .

An open letter to VO clients everywhere

Dear, most esteemed and very valued client,

I truly am delighted to work with you, collaborate with you, create wonderful voices for you, but please remember that my life does not revolve around you. Sometimes my diary is very full, and fitting everything into my working day requires a degree of juggling. (Or perhaps that should be a degree IN juggling)!

You see, I have other clients, other jobs awaiting my dulcet tones; I have a home; I have a family, I have a dog that needs walking. I need to shop occasionally, I need to feed my poor long-suffering husband from time to time - and even I need to eat! Yes ... amazing though it may seem, I have a life!

You see, despite the fact that I am a full time voice actor and am really very happy, thrilled, proud and pleased to work with you, I do not actually spend my entire life in a small padded room, sitting at my microphone talking to myself twenty four hours a day seven days a week. So, when you promise to deliver a script at a certain time, I work on the assumption that you will deliver said script when you have said you will ... and that when said script arrives, unless you tell me otherwise, I assume it will be 'THE SCRIPT' in its entirety, complete, whole, perfect, checked and double checked and approved by all concerned at your end. I would never expect to receive an incomplete script (any more than you would expect an incomplete recording with bits missing here and there unless it is an audition or a sample read). Once we have agreed that I am doing the job - then I will only ever upload the full and finished recording. Once we are actually working on the project, if for any strange reason you felt the need to send me an incomplete script, I would hope you'd include a note saying that 'this is a draft' - 'for your information only' - 'please do not record' ... something along those lines would be really very helpful.

Adding to my slight irritation is the fact that despite having agreed the schedule and having told me the script would be ready for me to record on Friday morning, it didn't actually arrive until after lunch.

So dear client - having turned my perfectly ordinary Friday into something approaching a nightmare ... please forgive me but I am likely to be every so slightly abrupt if you contact me tomorrow (which in case you haven't noticed is a Saturday ... part of what we call 'The Weekend') to ask me where my recording is.

Got that dear client?

Kind regards ... and have a great weekend.

Yours etc.,

​

Am I being too harsh? Perhaps .... but it's been a tough day. And in case you're wondering, I didn't send it!

November 2017

‘Life in The Garden’ by Penelope Lively – published by Whole StoryAudiobooks A horticultural memoir that laces together the author’s two passions – gardening and literature.

‘A Summer House Party’ by Caro Fraser – set just before the beginning of WWII, this is a saga of secrecy, lies, unrequited love and a lot of stiff upper lips.Lamplight Audio

I think there’s something of a theme developing here as I have two more wartime audiobooks in production.

‘The Girls from the Local’ – by Rosie Archer coming very soon from Quercus

‘The Bomb Girls at Christmas’ – by Daisy Styles for Lamplight Audio

In other news

‘Lady Osbaldestone’s Christmas Goose’ by Stephanie Laurens which I recorded for Blackstone Audio in October has received a glowing review in Audiofile Magazine Click HERE TO READ

I spent last weekend at the Voice Over Network Audiobook Weekend getting some in depth coaching from Sean Pratt and Johnny Heller. It was an exhausting but exhilarating experience and I look forward to putting all that inspiration and knowledge into practice in 2018.

I am blogging again … mainly about audiobooks and voice training – but there are other nuggets in there too – please join me.

May I also take this opportunity to thank the authors, publishers, producers, production houses and colleagues that I have worked with over 2017. It has been my most productive year yet and I am looking forward to reading more great books in 2018.

Thanks also to everyone who has taken the time to read my blog posts ... I will be sharing many more audio insights soon.

In the meantime - I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy, Peaceful and Productive New Year.

My 'Audiobook Weekend' Take-away - 1

​Quote from the inestimable Johnny Heller, actor, narrator and coach with whom I had a masterclass at the #VONAudiobook17 Weekend:

'Audiobook narration is about Acting .... it's all about acting!' ​

Johnny is a inspirational coach. He's also a blogger. If you're looking for a voiceover coach (or acting coach, or audiobook coach ... or indeed any other kind of coach ... you need to read this for Johnny's invaluable advice on Choosing a Coach. Just click on THIS LINK​

An Actor's Voice

I am so grateful for the in-depth voice training that I received when I was at Drama School from some of the best voice teachers in the UK. The lessons I learned then have stood me in good stead over a career spanning almost fifty years. Through two years' of daily voice classes together with singing classes, I learned to use my voice effectively and safely and thanks to preparing carefully every day, doing a vocal warm up before recording, and generally taking care of my voice, my pipes are still in good working order and are earning their keep!

In addition to that formal voice training all those years ago, I have learned so much from voice coaches, directors, fellow actors and narrators over the years and I'd like to share some of that knowledge. Hence this blog which I hope will be useful to fellow actors (both voice actors and stage actors), public speakers, and indeed, anyone who speaks in public or into a microphone.

So ... I'll be covering all the basics of vocal training and using the voice in performance - starting with the letter 'A'. So I'll be looking at Accents (how and when to use them, how much is too much?); Accuracy (why accuracy is important both in writing and reading); Acting - in particular how to use your voice effectively - and why muttering is not acceptable); Also ... Adaptability; Ambition; Articulation; Audio; Audibooks. and what appears to be the latest buzz-word Authenticity.

About me

P​hoto Credit: Paul Haynes​

I've gleaned quite a lot of knowledge over the years, knowledge that might be of interest to others, especially authors, actors and voice actors. Because I read so much, for pleasure and professionally, I also occasionally write reviews of what I read - so they're here too.